After an enthralling end to the Bundesliga campaign in 2022/23, this next season is set to be another exciting ride as Germany’s top clubs do battle and attempt to wrestle the title from record league winners Bayern Munich.
While you may often assess the Premier League title odds and look at the teams who could top the table in Spain and Italy, there is nothing like the competitions of the Bundesliga.
This article will focus on the three teams expected to be pushing for the Bundesliga championship trophy in May 2024.
Is Bayern Munich Set for More History?
Bayern Munich clinched a 13th consecutive Bundesliga title in dramatic fashion on the final day of the season in 2023 and will be keen to make lighter work of the campaign this time around.
Sadio Mane departed for Saudi Arabia this summer after a single season in Bavaria saw the Senegalese score 12 goals in 38 games while defender Lucas Hernandez returned to France to join Paris Saint-Germain.
What will be interesting to see is how the team develops following summer additions from Champions League and Bundesliga rivals. Left-back Raphael Guerreiro has arrived from Dortmund while highly-rated Min-Jae Kim has joined from Napoli after winning the Serie A title.
With Robert Lewandowski, Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery all ending their time with Munich in recent years, it still feels Bayern are undergoing somewhat of a transition, but so far, they have had enough quality to keep their hold on the top spot in German football.
Rumours over a move for Tottenham striker Harry Kane persist. Kane is a player certain to take Bayern Munich up a level further should he arrive from north London.
Is Borussia Dortmund Out for Bundesliga Revenge?
After the heartbreak of missing out on the coveted Bundesliga title which would have ended Bayern’s 12-year dominance, Dortmund will be doing all they can to go one better and at last be number one again.
Despite Guerreiro switching to their rivals in Munich, Dortmund have smartly replaced the Portugal international with the free transfer signing of Ramy Bensebaini who is accustomed to the German league after spending four years with Borussia Monchengladbach where he scored 19 goals in 95 Bundesliga games from defence.
Dortmund have bolstered their offensive positions with the signing of Austria international Marcel Sabitzer from Bayern while Felix Nmecha who started his career with Manchester City, has joined from Wolfsburg.
Supporters will be eager to see BVB push for the title again and get over the line this season after a number of near misses since their last title victories with legendary manager Jurgen Klopp in 2011 and 2012.
RB Leipzig Determined to Keep Pushing
Die Roten Bullen are firmly established in the top-flight of German football having been promoted in 2016 and have finished in the top three of the table five times in the last seven seasons. This shows their remarkable consistency while competing against the likes of Bayer Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt and Borussia Monchengladbach.
Qualifying for Europe regularly, RB Leipzig are accustomed to taking on the elite and have a squad full of top players and youngsters with huge potential.
In the summer of 2023, they added Lois Openda to boost their attacking ranks after the Belgian scored 21 goals last season to fire Lens to second in Ligue 1. They have also signed midfielder Christoph Baumgartner from Hoffenheim as well as young attacker Benjamin Sesko and Nicolas Seiwald both from RB Salzburg.
RB Leipzig have also purchased 18-year-old centre-back El Chadaille Bitshiabu from Paris Saint-Germain with the aim of nurturing the talented teen to star in defence.
Overall, it is set to be another exciting season with Germany’s top clubs going head-to-head. It remains to be seen if anyone will have the quality to finish above Bayern, but things are certain to go right down to the wire if past seasons are to go by.
